Formal occasions, such as weddings, often involve participants holding floral or decorative arrangements to provide a festive atmosphere for all present. Weddings, in particular, are life changing events which are planned for long periods of time, where even the smallest items are carefully detailed. Significant planning, in the case of bridal accessories, occurs prior to the wedding to ensure that the wedding exhibits the personal tastes of the bride. Often, the bride and/or others in the bridal party carry a ceremonial bouquet of flowers which is thrown at the conclusion of festivities. The bouquet may be thrown to onlookers.
Currently, hand-held bouquets of flowers used at weddings may have several configurations. These bouquet configurations, however, often have many problems. One bouquet arrangement commonly used is a set of equal length cut flowers. This type of arrangement, however, has several obvious drawbacks. The cut ends of the stems usually results in water loss causing premature wilting of the blossoms. Additionally, the leaking water and/or sap may potentially soil the hands and/or dress of the bride or bridal attendees. Lastly, the bouquet may be difficult to hold because the stems are not bound.
To alleviate these drawbacks, florists often provide a binding around the exterior of the stems of the flowers. Such binding of the flowers allows for ease of handling. To bunch the flowers, wire or a similar type binder is used to draw the stems together. An external wrapping is then applied usually consisting of several layers of simple fabric, such as linen. The florist may also add a wetting device such that the stem cut ends do not dry out. This wetting device is usually a plastic bodied water retaining end cap. To create these arrangements the flowers must be tightly bound to allow the bride to be able to hold the flowers in a unified configuration. The wire binding process may damage the stems causing an additional water leakage path for the flowers enhancing the wilting process. The binding also only allows a limited tubular shape for the floral bouquet. A further drawback of these arrangements is that some species of delicate flowers may be wholly inappropriate for binding in this fashion, limiting the floral choices available for use. The bouquet prepared in this manner, therefore, limits the types and arrangements of flowers that may be carried by the bride or bridal party on wedding day.
Another alternative bouquet arrangement for brides is a plastic bouquet holder. The plastic bouquet holder provides a binding point for cut flowers by using a friction-fit plastic handle configuration. These plastic holders, while functional, are often unattractive to the eye. They are used, however, because they are a superior alternative to other arrangements. The plastic bouquet holders are easier to hold with less possibility of soiling the user. The flowers are often kept in place by either force fitting the stems into the holder or are held in place by a floral foam body which allows the cut flower ends to remain moist.
There are many drawbacks to the typical plastic bouquet holder. Plastic bouquet holders are single use-throw away items not suitable for providing a keepsake of the occasion. If substantial changes are desired in the arrangement, such as when a bride or florist wishes to change or enhance a previously made bouquet, the entire floral holder and the flower holding foam head must be thrown away, as the head and the handle are crafted as a single unit. If multiple bouquets are to be used throughout the day, such as during the wedding and at the reception, multiple holders must be used due to the one piece construction, thereby increasing costs for the occasion.
It is therefore desired to provide a floral bouquet holder which does not have the drawbacks typically present in fresh cut flower arrangements and hand-held plastic bouquet arrangements.